


Prince of Weeds and Primroses

by GeekMom13, tigerpiidge



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fairy Tale, Curses, Fairy Tale Curses, M/M, Witch Curses
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-24
Updated: 2018-03-24
Packaged: 2019-04-07 07:49:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,410
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14076246
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GeekMom13/pseuds/GeekMom13, https://archiveofourown.org/users/tigerpiidge/pseuds/tigerpiidge
Summary: Crown Prince Yuri has been cursed and sent to live in a small cottage out of the way. Every other week, a villager came to trim back the thick overgrowth. They were always quick to run away at the young prince’s sharp tongue. That changed when Yuuri, the gardener’s son, came to tend the flowers. He had volunteered one week when no one else seemed to want to go and face the angry prince. Others would run quickly away, barely clearing enough to call it a path, but Yuuri was calm and simply smiled as the blonde yelled at him, some vines along the path snapping out to block his way.





	Prince of Weeds and Primroses

**Author's Note:**

> This is for the Live Love YoI Bing- a fun little addition to the Live Love YoI Big Bang!
> 
> The artwork is done by my lovely co-creator Tigerpiidge (who also came up with the adorable name and joined in on the beta work)
> 
> [Visit me on Tumblr. I take requests, talk headcanons and generally geek out over everything.](https://geekmom13.tumblr.com/)

When Prince Yuri was old enough to be crowned, his father, King Yakov, held the traditional presentation ceremony to announce him as his successor. Royalty from far and wide came to watch--but as it tends to go in tales like this, one rightful guest had been forgotten.

A slighted noble sent a witch to curse the new Prince. Lord Emil probably should have picked a different witch--this one had a strange penchant for working  _ flowers _ into everything. 

That was six years ago.

And ever since- strange things began to happen. Initially, it was little vines. The King kept Yuri in the castle, away from anything that might upset him--and, at first, it worked. But then, the chef served kasha.

Yuri threw a tantrum and as he raged, leaves and roses sprung up around him, tightening their hold the harder he fought. He ended up completely cocooned in roses and leaves. It took the royal gardener, Toshiya, almost three hours to work the roses from the young man’s clothes and hair. 

Crown Prince Yuri spent the three years since the  _ rose bush incident  _ in a small cottage surrounded by vines he created through hatred and anger. 

The only safe place was the path- it was lined with catnip- the village’s stray cats would flock to it. Yuri enjoyed watching them play and sometimes extended vines teasingly for them to chase. 

Every other week, a villager came to trim back the thick overgrowth. They were always quick to run away at the young prince’s sharp tongue. That changed when Yuuri, the gardener’s son, came to tend the flowers. He had volunteered one week when no one else seemed to want to go and face the angry prince. Others would run quickly away, barely clearing enough to call it a path, but Yuuri was calm and smiled as the blonde yelled at him, some vines along the path snapping out to block his way.

The brunette would simply run his hand over the offending vine, say something softly to it and continue on clearing the path. 

Soon, he began to visit weekly. When the Prince asked why, Yuuri simply said, “ _ A weed is a plant whose virtues have not been discovered. _ ” 

The Prince shoved away from the window and went to watch the cats again, ignoring Yuuri for the rest of the visit. 

The next time they spoke, Yuuri told him, “ _ If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need _ .”

The Prince had barely noticed the pathways slowly emerging as the gardener’s son came to tend his garden weekly, then twice a week, then daily, always speaking things that he told Yuri were parables. 

Yuri would always be sure to find free time when Yuuri would come and visit. He always timed his interruptions to Yuuri’s work, just long enough to not appear eager… but never so long as to make his guest stay past dark.

One day, Yuuri offered to share his lunch. He had his mother bring an extra bowl up to the garden at lunchtime. Yuuri presented the katsudon as if he knew the Prince would find every bite delicious. 

He wasn’t wrong, but Yuri wasn’t going to admit that. 

“Pirozhki are better.”

“Okay,” was the response from the gardener’s son as he finished his bowl.

Afterwards, he went on with his tending and Prince Yuri finally paid attention to the progress he had been ignoring. There were sculpted tigers and lions; a few smaller bushes had been turned into kittens. 

The Prince couldn’t name the warmth he felt in his chest and he panicked at the new sensation. The vines grew fast, shredding the animals and surprising Yuuri.

He jumped back but was still hit with one of the vines. There was a crack and Yuuri whimpered, holding his arm close to his chest. 

Yuri glanced over- freezing when a small bit of blood dripped down the older man’s cheek. 

“JUST LEAVE ME ALONE! I don’t need your pity or your sculptures.”

Yuuri said something, but the Prince couldn’t- or wouldn’t- listen. He ran inside, shutting the door behind him and letting the vines wind around the house and over the windows, shutting him inside. 

Yuuri didn’t return the next day or the day after… Or any day for the next week. 

Not that Prince Yuri was keeping track. 

When a random villager came to cut back the branches for the royal chef to bring food, Yuri asked about Yuuri and the villager ran. 

The next day another villager came and Yuri repeated his question, “Do you know what happened to the gardener’s son?” Again, the villager ran. 

This repeated a few times and eventually, Yuri focused on keeping the path clear on his own, spurred by his wishes to keep the world away. If there was a path free, there would be no need for visitors.  _ Most _ visitors had been bothersome anyway.

As he walked by the library one day, he remembered the first thing Yuuri ever said to him and decided to peek in and find something to read. He found a book that led him through breathing exercises. He sat in front of one of the plants and tried to control the leaves, drawing from the peace he used to feel. Sometimes it was the peace of a life before the curse, sometimes it was the small talks with Yuuri in the afternoon sun, sometimes it was just old memories 

Days passed like this with the Prince slowly learning how to shape the plants around him. He was even able to avoid destroying the plants when the chef brought pirozhki- that were  _ nothing _ like his grandpa’s. 

Yuri asked if the chef had ever heard of Katsudon.

The next day, the chef returned with a treat. She had visited the former King and they had made a new recipe just for the young Crown Prince. 

He wanted to share it with Yuuri. 

“Hey, have you heard anything of the gardener’s son?” Yuri asked.

“Oh, Prince, he is still recovering. His arm was rather bad.”

Yuri just thought the small cut on his cheek had scared Yuuri away, he didn’t know the vines had managed to  _ hurt _ the one person who took the time to speak with him- the one person he could ever consider as being a friend. 

It was another week before he saw the familiar black hair approaching the garden. 

As Yuri stepped out of the house, he concentrated on clearing away the plants that blocked Yuuri’s view. Yuuri flinched backwards, wary of the moving vines. 

Yuri rushed forward, slowing before he caught Yuuri’s attention. He had spent all morning working on his breathing and trying to control the grass in the front yard. He had pulled a sheet from the bed and laid it out, setting up a picnic like the first day Yuuri shared his katsudon. After all, the cook had made him the special treat again.

He walked up to Yuuri, who was looking around the tidy garden with a small smile.

“Hi,” Yuri offered quietly, trying not to startle Yuuri again- that flinch had been hard to miss.

“Hello, your majesty.” 

Yuri ducked his head. “You know you can just call me Yuri when we’re alone.”

“I wasn’t sure after--” He motioned to his still-wrapped arm. “If you still wanted to be my friend.” 

Yuri nodded and pulled Yuuri behind him to the other side of the cottage, grabbing the basket from the window and sitting down. 

He watched as Yuuri bit into the pirozhki. “...is this?”

“Katsudon Pirozhki. Great, aren’t they? It's my grandpa's recipe.”

“They’re delicious!” 

They slowly worked through the pastries as the sun warmed their skin. 

“So, the others said the garden was a mess, what happened?” Yuuri asked.

“Well... I was worried. And then I got so mad that no one would answer my questions. Then people stopped showing up. And… I felt lonely. I found a book and that helped me with breathing… I worked on it and wanted to show you.”

Yuuri gathered Yuri to his side, dropping a kiss on the top of his head. Growing next to them was a small plant, a beautiful primrose. Yuri leaned back a little, biting his lip before darting forward and pressing their lips together. He let go quickly and buried his face against Yuuri’s shoulder, unaware of the hundreds of flowers blooming around them - primroses of every colour. 


End file.
